Cardinal Keith O'Brien: Time to Forgive & Let Him Find His Inner Peace
- 3 Mar 2013
This is the statement just released by Cardinal Keith O’Brien. In recent days certain allegations which have been made against me have become public. Initially, their anonymous and non-specific nature led me to contest them. However, I wish to take this opportunity to adm...
You Can't Out-UKIP UKIP
- 3 Mar 2013
I was on the Andrew Marr Show this morning doing the paper review with Clare Share Short and Jude Kelly. Here;s a short clip that @liarpoliticians has posted on Youtibe where I make the point that I don’t think the Conservatives can out-UKIP UKIP. But some of the stories in ...
Theatre Review: CHESS at the Union Theatre
- 1 Mar 2013
Well that was quite an evening. I’m on the train home from seeing CHESS at the very small Union Theatre in Southwark. Because of my working hours I very rarely get to go out in the evening, so it was really nice to do something a bit different. I bought the tickets ages ago a...
The Challenge for UKIP Comes in May
- 1 Mar 2013
No one should deny that the really big winners last night were UKIP. Few people had seen it coming much before Polling Day itself, John Rentoul being an honourable exception. To come second, only 1,711 behind the Liberal Democrats was an incredible achievement, and much of th...
Chess: I Know It So Well
- 1 Mar 2013
Tonight I am going to see the musical CHESS again. It’s the tenth time I will have been to see it since it first opened in the West End in the 1980s. It’s a cold war story, with music by the men from Abba and lyrics by Tim Rice. To be honest I am not a great fan of musicals, ...
Fifteen Things We Learned From Eastleigh
- 1 Mar 2013
I’ll write a more considered piece on Eastleigh later, but here’s something to think about… Fifteen things we learned from Eastleigh. Voters will sometimes forgive a political party anything. Once the LibDems get in, it’s almost impossible to get them out Gran...
The Idea That This Government Believes in Deregulation Is a Joke
- 28 Feb 2013
Yesterday I got an email from our accountants telling us this… From April this year, HMRC are changing the way in which employers have to report payroll information. Previously, employers had to file a return at the end of each tax year with details of all employees, their...
It Shouldn't Happen to a Radio Presenter: No 4 - Reacting to a Guest Faux Pas
- 27 Feb 2013
This afternoon I recorded an interview with best selling author Barbara Taylor-Bradford, which we’ll be putting out on next Thursday’s LBC Book Club programme. So as a well trained radio presenter, I thought I would trail it at the end of my programme tonight. With me in the s...
Telling Gary McKinnon's Story
- 27 Feb 2013
We made an exciting announcement today. Biteback Publishing has bought world rights to a book from Janis Sharp, the mother of hacker Gary McKinnon. The book, Saving Gary McKinnon: A Mother’s Story, will be published in September. I am thrilled to be publishing Janis Sharp’s ...
The Implications of Eastleigh - Crunchtime for Cameron and Clegg as Miliband Escapes Scrutiny
- 27 Feb 2013
I can’t remember a by-election which was so hard fought and was more difficult to call than this one, apart, possibly from Crewe & Nantwich. However, in that one there was no national overhang on a particular party, and there was a definite feeling of Tory momentum. There...
Grooming a Schnauzer
- 26 Feb 2013
Every six weeks or so our Miniature Schnauzer, Bubba, has to go to a dog groomer in Heathfield to have his hair cut. It’s a bit of a trauma for the poor little lad. For one thing he always throws up on the journey, although never on the return He’s otherwise very well behaved...
A Good News Story About Care Homes
- 26 Feb 2013
We talked about care homes on my programme tonight, Figures from the Alzheimers Society show that 80% of people in care homes are suffering from dementia. That really is a quite incredible statistic. Many people are scared of going into a care home and in some ways you can und...
Assuming Guilt
- 25 Feb 2013
We live in a society where we automatically assume guilt. Yes, we hear the caveat “innocent until proven guilty”, but how many of us really believe it? We all assume that Cardinal Keith O’Brien is guilty of acting inappropriately with four young men because our overall impress...
Clegg Statement Just Makes Things Worse
- 24 Feb 2013
Nick Clegg has just made things a whole lot worse for himself and his party. It’s all very well being indignant, but it’s quite difficult when you haven’t actually got much to be indignant about. Fraser Nelson rightly questions why on earth he has brought Danny Alexander into ...
Is It Time For Another Nick Clegg 'I'm Sorry' Video?
- 24 Feb 2013
The last thing any political party wants in the week before an election are the weekend papers to be full of headlines about a scandal. It’s bad enough for the LibDems that the Vicky Pryce/Chris Huhne trial recommences in the morning, but to have headlines about how they have ...
Tom Swarbrick's 'The News That Nearly Was'
- 24 Feb 2013
I work with some brilliant young people, both at Biteback and LBC. Two of the brightest and most talented at LBC are my Sunday show producer Carl McQueen and reporter Tom Swarbrick. Tom’s about to be assigned to Nick Ferrari’s Breakfast Show, but over the last six months he ha...
The Loss of AAA is a Mild National Humiliation - Now Let's Get Serious About Generating Growth & Cutting Spending
- 23 Feb 2013
There’s been a lot of hypocritical comment since it was announced Britain’s credit rating had been downgraded from AAA to AA1. With a few exceptions people on the right are making out there’s nothing to see and people should move along and these credit ratings Johnnies don’t ...
On My LBC 97.3 Sunday Show Tomorrow From 10am...
- 23 Feb 2013
We have a corker of show tomorrow (producer Carl McQueen is very proud of himself), so I thought I’d give you the rundown… 10-11am Interview and your calls to HM Chief Inspector of Schools Sir Michael Wilshaw. 11-1130am Interview with Sir David Attenborough 1130-12 Olly Man...
It Shouldn't Happen to a Radio Presenter: No 3 - Being Recognised
- 23 Feb 2013
“Excuse me,” said the elderly gentleman. “Are you the chap from ConservativeHome?” That happened yesterday afternoon on the train back to Tonbridge. “Er, no. I’m Iain Dale,” I said. Flattering, though it is, I am not Tim Montgomerie! “Ah yes, I see you on Sky News in the ev...
The Tories Should Beware of Marta Andreasen
- 22 Feb 2013
The news that UKIP MEP Marta Andreasen has defected to the Conservatives will no doubt provoke some celebrations at Tory HQ in Eastleigh tonight. She is the second one to do so, following in the footsteps of David Campbell-Bannerman, who re-ratted last year. She cites Nigel F...